in riverside county and not far away from san diego county, at least four homes have burned in the campo area. at least 80 more are under threat. firefighters are battling hi temperatures and gusty winds. evacuees are staying in a nearby high school. >>> paula, it's not just california struggling with serious wildfires. dozens of fires are burning in several states and the smoke from the fires is so heavy a thick, it's spreading across the country and can be seen from space. abc's clayton sandell reports on the mounting toll. >> reporter: where there's fire, there is smoke. a lot of it. at least 36 large fires are burning in nine states, the worst in central washington, where thousands of firefighters have been battling for weeks to save homes and towns. thick haze fills the air, even shrouding out the sun. >> it's kind of a hassle to evacuate, and it's stressful, and i have a 9-year-old who still has posttraumatic stress from the first fire. >> reporter: across the pacific northwest, unhealthy smoke has forced people to wear masks. they were handing them out in schools in east wenatchee